You can use the de-briefing session to ask the interpreter how they feel about the session and anything they had to translate, and possibly schedule a further meeting or telephone appointment if they wish to discuss difficult content further. It may not always be possible to meet these requests if, for example, you have a limited pool of interpreters. Sometimes refugees will ask for a particular kind of interpreter, such as someone of the same gender or someone who speaks a particular dialect. You will need to consider the reasons for this request, including whether it is reasonable, and whether it is practical or possible to meet it. When working with interpreters, you should try to maintain control over the session.
Understand different modes of interpreting
In CBT practice a strong therapeutic relationship between therapist and client is valued as it promotes collaborative working which is considered central to efficacy and positive outcomes (Beck, Reference Beck1995; Roth and Pilling Reference Roth and Pilling2007). It is important to note that in the current study, as practitioners became more creative and flexible in their collaborative working with clients and the interpreter, these feelings changed to ‘work in progress’ and ‘possibilities’, as expressed in their accounts. In this study this preference seemed to be motivated by the need for accurate interpretations to make informed clinical decisions and risk management. Data relating to the use of interpreters within the IAPT service were accessed, via the agency that provided the interpreter service, for the 3.5-year period prior to the study. A total of 350 requests for interpreters were made to the local language agent during this period.
Pause often and allow the interpreter to finish before speaking.
One of the most important roles that interpreters play in the United Kingdom is to make sure that essential services are available to everyone, regardless of their level of language proficiency. These good practice guidelines give an overview of the issues that psychologists need to consider when working with interpreters to ensure that they are able to be as effective as possible, and provide a series of key recommendations to ensure best practice in this area. This is an introductory course for practitioners in local authorities or third sector organisations working with spoken language interpreters. If a refugee is unhappy with an interpreter for any reason, then they should feel able to tell you this.
Interpreting & Translation Training
We advocate that the Deaf student also attends this session.We highly recommended allocating some additional time for translation work. In challenging settings like mental health, service providers can support interpreters by offering clear pre-session briefings, discussing any potential emotional triggers, and creating an open channel for debriefing after the session. Making sure that interpreters have relevant experience for specialised contexts, such as health care, legal, or mental health settings, can significantly improve the quality and accuracy of the interpreting provided. Impartiality is a cornerstone of professional interpreting, as it ensures that interpreters facilitate communication without introducing their own views or biases. In settings such as healthcare, law enforcement, mental health, welfare, education, immigration, and legal proceedings, the neutrality of the interpreter is crucial; any perceived or real bias could undermine trust, affect decision-making, and potentially alter case outcomes.
Support links
They may not be able to do this directly during an appointment but should be made aware that they can do so at any point. You may have to trust your instinct and use your judgement about whether it is appropriate to continue with the session. You should also have a procedure in place to allow the refugees to tell you if they have any problems or complaints about interpreters. Another reason to contact your client is to communicate about the scope of your responsibilities. If you dedicate the responsibilities and communicate, the day of the event will go much smoother. Participants in this study felt that the interpretation process refereed this shared understanding through adding or omitting information. Participants identified that working with an interpreter presented additional challenges to communicating understanding, and empathy, which are considered crucial aspects of developing the therapeutic alliance. The limitation of direct translation within interpreter facilitated triad was highlighted.
What is language interpreting and translation?
Where possible, it is good practice to avoid working with interpreters who have a personal relationship with the refugees you are supporting. This is to ensure neutrality, objectivity, confidentiality and to avoid conflicts of interest. The interpreter’s role is to be a channel of communication between the refugee and your Community Sponsorship group.
Training and support for therapists
Provide the interpreter with preparation materials (copies of notes, presentations and videos) when you book, so they can familiarise with the topic. A copy of an agenda and the names and titles of participants (where applicable) is useful, especially when there are multiple people being referred to during the session. With our network of over 3,600 professional interpreters, in 190+ languages (including Indigenous languages) we enable you to connect with your customers in any language, anywhere, anytime.
Understand
This shared understanding can be complex, due to differences in knowledge systems between the client and therapist, even if they share a language (Beck, Reference Beck1995). Participants in this study also expressed concern that shared understanding between client and therapist was being compromised by the interpreting process, either due to difficulty with direct translation or by the influence of the interpreter's own assumptions. The perceived challenges to developing a shared understanding was not only expressed in relation to spoken language but also with regard to written materials used during sessions.
- As explained by participants in this study, sometimes these have to be interpreted from English due to unavailability of relevant measures in other languages.
- We offer projects that match your experience, industry specialization, and budget.
- Drawing from two decades of training therapists to work with interpreters, we reflect on research findings, a variety of case examples, exercises, and implementation tips.
- In recent years, demand for BSL interpreters has increased dramatically, so it is recommended that you request an interpreter as far in advance as possible.
- For example, if a female refugee requests a female interpreter because she needs to discuss medical issues, you may want to try and arrange this as otherwise she may not disclose relevant information and you may not be able to support her correctly.
- Training is offered online and in-person, in a variety of lengths to suit your team, time, and budget.
Challenges of communicating empathy
While communication is occurring through the interpreter, keep in mind that the information you are relaying is directed toward the patient. Use first-person language (e.g., you, your, you're) and avoid precursory instructions like "ask the patient" or "tell her/him." Some points of communication are also non-verbal, such as facial expressions and gestures. Paying attention to these can help you better understand patient reactions and responses and vice versa.
Remember that Auslan and English are different langauges
If we are unable to secure an interpreter, we will contact you to offer alternative times or dates where an interpreter has indicated that they have availability, if these are suitable to you. In recent years, demand for BSL interpreters has increased dramatically, so it is recommended that you request an interpreter as far in advance as possible. Although we will always endeavour to secure interpreters for last-minute requests, we cannot guarantee provision as interpreters may have less availability at short notice. It is important to recognise that interpreters may choose not to work in specific domains, which further limits availability for booking interpreters.
Support from the start
It is noted that one of the limitations of this study is its use of a small, purposive sample which may reduce the generalizability of the findings. It is also outside of the scope of this study to report on outcomes of the interpreted therapy reflected on by participants. Future research, which aims to delineate models and processes applied within interpreted therapy settings, in order to identify best practice, is warranted. This further research should employ both quantitative, and qualitative, research methods for triangulation, and convergence, of evidence. As identified in Aqueduct Translations cross-cultural communication of the participants in this study, it is sometimes ‘hard to hear the voice of the client in these interactions’. Therefore, there is a need for more research that explores the experiences of clients who have received interpreted CBT and GSH, to expand upon the limited research that has been done in this area (e.g. Costa and Briggs, Reference Costa and Briggs2014).
Maintain professional conduct
Dubus (Reference Dubus2016) has noted that interpreters are taught to channel communication with emphasis on neutrality and accuracy and are often not seen as part of a team during this work. In a second sub-theme it was recognized that the interpreter could bring knowledge, and insight, to the therapeutic process that could enhance the cultural perspective. Some participants highlighted how the interpreter's ability to communicate concepts in a culturally relevant way could play a key role in mediating their shared understanding. Additionally, there has been research into the difficulties in communication of empathy, experienced by therapist, during these three-way interactions (Pugh and Vetere, Reference Pugh and Vetere2009).